101 Mich. 146 | Mich. | 1894
The plaintiff is a manufacturer of sheet iron. During the year 1890 it furnished to the Detroit Elbow Company goods to a considerable amount, including those in question in this suit. The elbow company, in December, 1890, sold the goods in question to
The case presented two issues of fact for the determination of the jury: First, was there fraud in the purchase of the goods by the elbow company? And, second, was the bank a Iona fide purchaser for value? The plaintiff recovered a verdict, and the defendant appeals,
“It will be for you to say as to whether the Preston National Bank — the corporation itself — parted with something valuable in itself, and as to whether it did not have notice of the fraud.”
In another portion of the charge the circuit judge stated to the jury, in substance, that if the property was turned over in payment of a pre-existing indebtedness, this would not, under the law, constitute the defendant a bona fide purchaser. There was no specific instruction as to the effect of the discharge of the guarantor, and it is alleged that this instruction did not cover the law of the case. There was no evidence of a discharge of the guarantor except as he would be discharged by operation of law on payment of a portion of the debt. It is unnecessary to determine whether, under these circumstances, these instructions were not sufficiently full, for, in the view we take of the case, there was nothing upon which to base the submission of the question of the good-faith purchase of the defendant to the jury. The defendant offered no testimony whatever to show that it was a good-faith purchaser. When the witness Stoddard was on the stand he gave the following testimony:
“ Q. Do you remember its being talked over that it would be a good idea to sell it outright to the bank, and*150 let them remove it, for fear of somebody attempting toreplevy it?
“A. I don’t remember.
“ Q. Was there not something of that kind said?
“ A. There was some reason given for moving it.
“ Q. Was not that the identical reason?
“'A. I really could not tell.
“ Q. That is, your recollection is faulty as to what was said about that.
“A. Yes, I know there was some reason given for moving it; but just what the reason was I could not state.”
This testimony is cited, not as showing affirmatively that the bank did have notice of the infirmity of the elbow company’s title, but to show that Stoddard, the only witness called who “could have had any knowledge upon the subject, was unable to say that it did not, and was unable to say that the only reason for removing these goods was not to prevent their being replevied. If, then, thé burden of proof rested upon the bank to show its good-faith purchase, there certainly was no error to the prejudice of the defendant in the instructions which the court gave. We think the rule is that, where fraud is shown in the purchase of property, one who claims to be a good-faith purchaser has. the burden of showing this fact. See Letson v. Reed, 45 Mich. 27; Berry v. Whitney, 40 Id. 65; Carrier v. Cameron, 31 Id. 379; 2 Schouler, Pers. Prop. § 609; Devoe v. Brandt, 53 N. Y. 462; Lynch v. Beecher, 38 Conn. 490.
We have examined the charge with care. We think the-instructions fairly submitted the questions of fact to the-jury, and, while the case, upon the proof, is not a strong one, we feel constrained to hold that there was sufficient, evidence tending to sustain the plaintiff’s claims to require the submission of the case to the jury. If a wrong .conclusion upon the facts has been reached, we are not, in this proceeding, able to apply the remedy.
The judgment will be affirmed, with costs.